'Horrible Bosses' just mediocre

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What has Jason Bateman done to deserve this? So often cast as the lone voice of reason in a world of hysterical nitwits, the “Arrested Development” star is rarely given roles that take advantage of his exceptional comedic timing and his uncommon ability to engage audiences even when trapped in movies as brainless as last year’s “Couples Retreat.”

“Horrible Bosses,” the high-concept comedy from “The King of Kong” director Seth Gordon, doesn’t exactly buck that trend, though it’s hardly the most egregious misstep on Bateman’s résumé. Credit Gordon and lead screenwriter Michael Markowitz with pushing for the erstwhile “Teen Wolf” to play Nick, an office drone routinely emasculated by his bullying supervisor (Kevin Spacey).

It’s just a shame Nick’s partners in crime are such insufferable boobs. They are Dale (Charlie Day) and Kurt (Jason Sudeikis), clownish suburbanites whose on-the-job tribulations pale by comparison.

Why Nick, who seems far too sensible to concoct a half-baked murder-for-hire scheme, would hang out with these dimwits is anyone’s guess. Dale is a shrill, wild-eyed Tasmanian devil — wherever he goes, calamity follows. Kurt, on the other hand, is so profoundly clueless it’s a wonder he remembers to breathe.

That’s no fault of Sudeikis’. Like Bateman, the “Saturday Night Live” regular seems to have fallen victim to typecasting, playing the same kind of slow-witted sap you may remember from “Hall Pass.” Day and Sudeikis are talented comedians, but the jokes here are hit and miss, and the pair’s admirable enthusiasm can’t compensate for the duds.

Another problem: The bosses, flaunting their indecency early on, are far more interesting than their disgruntled underlings. Spacey, who played an equally ruthless abuser in 1994’s “Swimming with Sharks,” is given some room to develop his character, so we begin to understand the fury behind his tirades.

But what of Bobby? Or Julia, Aniston’s horned-up dentist? Neither is given enough screen time — Bobby, with his obscene comb-over and vacant stare, seems brimming with unexplored potential — and “Bosses” is a lesser movie for it.

The premise is strong enough to sustain a smart, subversive comedy — think “9 to 5” — and Bateman, who wins our sympathy despite the unfortunate company he keeps, would be just the man to carry it — if only “Bosses” gave him more to work with, and aspired to a less elementary level of wit.